Innovative programming and engaging lectures generate the cultural vibrancy that is at the core the University Circle experience. From enlightened beginnings at Fall Convocation to celebrations of great minds at Commencement, the office of University Events manages the large, public ceremonies and events that have campus-wide significance.

The office also consults with event coordinators to identify resources for catering, marketing and facilities, as well as best practices for producing a successful event.

Fall Convocation opens each academic year with a formal celebration of scholarship and innovation. A bookend to commencement, convocation is an annual event open to university faculty, staff, students and friends. It features an academic procession and a keynote speaker.

Presented annually to an individual who has demonstrated exemplary ethical leadership, the Inamori Ethics Prize honors outstanding international ethical leaders whose actions and influence have greatly improved the condition of humankind.

The Inamori Ethics Prize carries with it a monetary award, which is intended to support the recipient’s ongoing work. Each year’s recipient is conferred the prize at Case Western Reserve University, where he or she also delivers a public lecture about his or her work and the challenges that lie ahead.

Town Hall of Cleveland at Case Western Reserve University brings engaging and provocative speakers to the Northeast Ohio community. The program’s goal is to educate and inform through a series of public lectures. Lectures have no pre-determined social or political agenda. They’re planned to enrich the depth and quality of the public discourse essential to a free society.

The William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series, is a partnership with the Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation that brings top authors to Northeast Ohio. The series is the signature fundraiser for the Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation and, in 2014-2015, moved its home to Case Western Reserve University’s new Tinkham Veale University Center.

On Case for Community Day all members of Case Western Reserve University are encouraged to volunteer and connect with the Greater Cleveland community. The day offers participants a variety of activities, including community improvement projects, fun with co-workers, a luncheon and an end-of-day celebration.

The Stephanie Tubbs Jones GospelFest showcases the talents of area musicians, churches and youth organizations in an annual celebration of the rich heritage of gospel music in Cleveland. Named in honor of Stephanie Tubbs Jones—a dedicated public servant and dual alumna of Case Western Reserve—the concert also serves as the culminating celebration of Case Western Reserve's Alumni Weekend.

Each year, Case Western Reserve University honors Martin Luther King, Jr. —the holiday, the man and the legacy—with a weeklong celebration that includes workshops, films, panel discussions and speakers.

The Louis Stokes Leadership Symposium is a public forum dedicated to leadership in public service and civic engagement as demonstrated by U.S. Congressman Louis Stokes. The symposium provides a platform for an individual, who exemplifies these qualities, to lead a thought-provoking discussion among members of the Greater Cleveland community, the Case Western Reserve University campus and others about the continuing importance and value of public leadership in the 21st century.

Introduced in 2005 as the Distinguished Lecture Series, this annual event engages the Greater Cleveland community in discourse on important topics of our time. In 2010, the event was named in honor of Francis Joseph Callahan Jr., local business leader, philanthropist and chairman emeritus of Swagelok, a leading fluid system manufacturer headquartered in Solon, Ohio. Previous speakers include noted Harvard University psychologist and cognitive scientist Steven Pinker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jared Diamond, international authority on mood disorders Kay Redfield Jamison, and New York Times best-selling authors Jerome Groopman and Pamela Hartzband.

The university-wide Commencement at Case Western Reserve University is a time of celebration in the lives of students, faculty, guests and the entire university community. It reflects the accomplishments of past year and sets a course for new ventures. Undergraduates, graduates and professional-school students will have their degrees officially conferred at this commencement ceremony.